If we go into the draft w/ Carimi/Brown as our starting OGs what they tells me more than anything is Phil Emery is full of crap. You can't say you are placing a premium on protecting the QB, ignore the OL completely one year, let your best OL walk, replace your 2nd best, and ignore the glaring weakness the next. When he made the statement that he didn't go after any OL in FA last year b/c his 3 targets retired I said that that sounded like he had a really bad plan. If he's going to let the interior get WORSE, that reinforces he has a really bad plan to me. I'll hold off judgement until after the draft, but right now I'm not seeing a lot to like about the OL direction.

Ill be very surprised if we dont add a free agent OG._________________
^^ props to LBC on the sig

What sucks about Louis is that we put in the development time with him and lived through the growing pains.

However as Mike said earlier I think this is a systematic rebuild of the OL.

And average pieces are not worth keeping as we make our moves. Louis despite being the Bears best OLMen last season was very average and while we do not see the solution right now I think he is aiming for someone better than Louis.

Sorry Windy, but this is revisionist history if ever there was. Louis was well above average, he was talked about as playing at a probowl level. Everyone on this board knows that had he not suffered that Allen cheapshot he would have gotten a big payday this year.

I don't look at it as revisionist history but more sober 2nd thought. Everything looks better and worse during the season than they actually are.

Major Wright was on Peter King's mid season All Pro team and while he was much better in the end he did not get a single award.

I think the people proclaiming Louis as a Pro Bowl player were a little excited about his improvement. I was one of them, but the knee injury and some time outside the season makes you think more.

There is no doubt he was one if our best OLmen and is a pretty good player, but I think you don't get upset about losing pretty good players.

PFF had him graded out in the mid 20s of OGs in the league.

He is an NFL caliber OG and I expect him to start for the Dolphins if his knee is healthy. But he is far from irreplaceable and there are a number of NFC OGs I would take over him,

My point is that we can do better than Louis assuming that he is even healthy.

Have you seen the rest of our line? That makes him easily our best lineman last season. Adding Bushrod was a priority to help build this line. If we had Louis and a 1st round G then we could have a pretty damn good line.

Being the Bears best OLmen does not mean anything the line was terrible.

We are in the same position with

Carimi/Brown
1st/ 2nd round pick

Slauson
1st/ 2nd round pick

We are better with

Brandon Moore
1st/2nd round pick

Louis was evaluated by Emery and this coaching staff and was not a priotrity to re-sign and that tells me everything I need to know about him.

Yes I am sure Kromer had input on this as well. I really think we have actual talent evaluators that dont rate by there floor rather by there ceiling. He will work and be ok or we could do way better. Which would you rather have._________________

I think given our tight cap space, the state of our O-line, and the fact that his knee was a question mark it makes sense that we passed. However, it makes just as much sense that Miami would take a shot at him because they are in a totally different situation.

I think given our tight cap space, the state of our O-line, and the fact that his knee was a question mark it makes sense that we passed. However, it makes just as much sense that Miami would take a shot at him because they are in a totally different situation.

I don't blame Louis, he would have only gotten that $715K here, so w/ Miami doubling that its an easy choice._________________2013 Bears Forum Mike Ditka Award Winner
2014 Adopt-A-Bear Alshon Jeffery

I think given our tight cap space, the state of our O-line, and the fact that his knee was a question mark it makes sense that we passed. However, it makes just as much sense that Miami would take a shot at him because they are in a totally different situation.

I don't blame Louis, he would have only gotten that $715K here, so w/ Miami doubling that its an easy choice.

I think given our tight cap space, the state of our O-line, and the fact that his knee was a question mark it makes sense that we passed. However, it makes just as much sense that Miami would take a shot at him because they are in a totally different situation.

I don't blame Louis, he would have only gotten that $715K here, so w/ Miami doubling that its an easy choice.

Absolutely. In the end it worked out well for all parties involved.

It remains to be seen whether it worked out well here or not. Slauson is an adequate OG, but we just let one of the young up and coming OGs in this league walk._________________2013 Bears Forum Mike Ditka Award Winner
2014 Adopt-A-Bear Alshon Jeffery

I think given our tight cap space, the state of our O-line, and the fact that his knee was a question mark it makes sense that we passed. However, it makes just as much sense that Miami would take a shot at him because they are in a totally different situation.

I don't blame Louis, he would have only gotten that $715K here, so w/ Miami doubling that its an easy choice.

Absolutely. In the end it worked out well for all parties involved.

It remains to be seen whether it worked out well here or not. Slauson is an adequate OG, but we just let one of the young up and coming OGs in this league walk.

True. I guess I am assuming a bit much for Slauson. It looks good on paper, but as a Bears fan I should know better than assuming it will translate to game day. I am optimistic that it will, though. Just having a new regime in town gives me reason to have some optimism.